Springfield 1911 Target sight options?

[Jevaughn]

I've got a Springfield Garrison 9mm 1911. Shoots great, but the non-adjustable sights are a good bit off for me. Covering the 10-ring with the front sight to where you can't even see it, it's popping a couple inches low. Both front and rear are dovetailed, I believe the rear sight is Novak while the front has the Springfield/Dan Wesson cut instead of Novak. Any recommendations on an adjustable set of target sights for a Springfield 1911? Wanting a thinner front sight than the 0.125 (1/8th) inch that's standard. This is a pure range toy, not a carry gun. Also, who would be the best person to take it to for sight installation? I know that rarely such things not need at least a minimal amount of hand-fitting.

 

[TheDonVito]

Hey, check out Dawson Precision’s website or go to Precision Tactical Arms Company out in crestview. They’re a little pricey but the staff is knowledgeable and one or two of the dudes in there do 1911 work. With that said, I can’t personally vouch for their work but I think fitting sights would be a good test of their craftsmanship. If they mess that up it won’t ruin the pistol.

Also, just gonna throw this out there..red dots are where it’s at. It’s definitely worth your time to consider that as an option as well. Let me know what you decide.

 

[Jevaughn]

Hey, check out Dawson Precision’s website or go to Precision Tactical Arms Company out in crestview. They’re a little pricey but the staff is knowledgeable and one or two of the dudes in there do 1911 work. With that said, I can’t personally vouch for their work but I think fitting sights would be a good test of their craftsmanship. If they mess that up it won’t ruin the pistol.

Also, just gonna throw this out there..red dots are where it’s at. It’s definitely worth your time to consider that as an option as well. Let me know what you decide.

I've used red dots on other firearms, but I'd rather not on this one. The dovetail mounts for dots have them way too high in my opinion, and I don't want to get the slide milled as it's got a beautiful hot-salt bluing finish and milling would require a re-finish on it.
I've been looking at the Dawson Precision stuff. I know that the novak cut rear sight will work (may require a little filing of the tenon) but the front sight will require the Springfield/DW cut, because of that, they don't offer a matched set and you have to buy them individually (not a big deal). Just wondering what other options are out there that people might have experience with.

 

[ChrisC]

Kensight adjustable Novak

before you change the sights, have another good shooter shoot your gun to confirm it is shooting low.

 

[Jevaughn]

Kensight adjustable Novak

before you change the sights, have another good shooter shoot your gun to confirm it is shooting low.

There were 3 of us shooting it that day, all pretty decent shooters. All of us were hitting a few inches low with a center hold. Daughter is used to a 6 o'clock hold from her .357 and was stacking bullets, just were all really low. If it weren't a 3-dot sight, I'd just file down the front sight to bring it up some. Didn't seem to matter what bullets we used, went through 2 brands of 115 fmj, some fiochi 124gr, and some speer gold dot 124gr +p loads, all of them had a similar POI to each other.

 

[ChrisC]

There were 3 of us shooting it that day, all pretty decent shooters. All of us were hitting a few inches low with a center hold. Daughter is used to a 6 o'clock hold from her .357 and was stacking bullets, just were all really low. If it weren't a 3-dot sight, I'd just file down the front sight to bring it up some. Didn't seem to matter what bullets we used, went through 2 brands of 115 fmj, some fiochi 124gr, and some speer gold dot 124gr +p loads, all of them had a similar POI to each other.

Measure the POI and use this sight height calculator https://dawsonprecision.com/sight-calculator/ to find the proper front sight height.

 

[RussSurfs]

I put Dawsons on my 9mm 1911 (and several CZ’s). They work great for me.

If you want to do them yourself, I have a sight tool you can borrow. If not, having a local gunsmith put them on is pretty inexpensive.

 

[Jevaughn]

I put Dawsons on my 9mm 1911 (and several CZ’s). They work great for me.

If you want to do them yourself, I have a sight tool you can borrow. If not, having a local gunsmith put them on is pretty inexpensive.

I appreciate it. I'll probably have a gunsmith do it though. And yeah, I'm leaning towards the Dawsons, it's what I had on a Beretta 92 that I really liked, and I can get a narrow front sight blade as well from them. Debating now on whether I want a fiber-optic front sight or not.

 

[RussSurfs]

I have the fiber optic on a couple if you would like to take a look for yourself before you buy.

 

[ABlaster]

I’m a fan of Dawson Precision as well and I have put their products through a wringer.